Striker couldn’t believe what had just transpired between him and Lila. The most emotionally charged sex of his life, culminating in one of the most intense orgasms he’d experienced, all initiated by him being a colossal asshole. There was a mountain of unsaid words between them, and he had so much to make amends for, he wasn’t sure where to begin.
The entire time he’d been raging at her, Lila fought for them, instead of fighting him, and she looked gorgeous doing it. Face flushed with suppressed anger, eyes shining with what he now knew was her love for him. Her body had been taut with tension, a body he’d been unable to keep from touching, taking.
“Lila holding up okay?” Hook was the first to break the silence. The concerned look on his face spoke volumes. He’d always been very protective of women. It went back to a bunch of shit from his childhood. It was no surprise that the first question he asked was about Lila’s wellbeing.
Striker shook his head, and rubbed a spot on the left side of his chest where a small ache had formed. “I don’t know, brother. Some serious shit went down today. I don’t think she’s had a chance to process it all.”
“How about you? You holding up?” This time the inquiry came from Jester.
“Don’t know that either, bro. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Shouldn’t take long.”
“Don’t worry, Striker, we’ll watch over your woman.” Hook spoke again.
“Thanks.” He bolted into the kitchen, snagged his gun off the table, and strode back out the front door as Jester and Hook plopped down on his couch to wait for Lila.
~ ~ ~ ~
Wrung out after her crying jag, Lila dragged herself out of the shower. She was sure Jester and Hook didn’t care what she wore, so she threw on a pair of yoga pants and one of Striker’s many Harley Davidson T-shirts. As she pulled the soft fabric over her head, the smell of him surrounded her and made her feel embraced by him, something she needed in this uncertain time.
She toweled off her long hair, and secured it up in a high ponytail. Since she wasn’t in the mood to dry it fully or put on makeup, it looked like she’d run out of ways to avoid going out to the living room.
With a fortifying breath, Lila opened the door to the hallway and started toward the den. Both men looked up as she came down the hall, staring at her as though they were expecting her to break down. “Hey, guys. Can I get you a drink or anything?”
Jester rose and walked to her. He slung a long arm around her shoulders, and steered her toward the couch where he encouraged her to sit. “No, doll. We can help ourselves if we want something. Sit and relax. By the way, you look about nineteen in that outfit. I like it.” He bobbed his eyebrows up and down at he as he spoke.
His antics had the desired effect, and she laughed, easing the tension in the room and the tension in her body. “Thank you, Jester. I needed that.”
“You doing all right, honey?” Hook asked.
Lila took a moment to answer. “I think so. Can I ask you guys a question?”
Hook raised an eyebrow at her.
“What happens now? With the Grimm Brothers I mean? I kinda zoned out at the end when I was sitting on Striker’s bike.” Her stomach clenched while she waited for his response. If he told her they were still in danger from Snake, she might just break down.
Hook rubbed a hand over the stubble on his chin. “Well, hon, I’m not going to lie to you and tell you we’re all best buds now, but I think things will be calm for a while. Snake agreed to abide by the terms of the deal we set with Jackal.” He shrugged as he continued. “His word probably means shit, but he’s got enough on his plate with taking control of his club.”
“What do you mean?”
“From what I’ve heard, the Grimms were pretty split as far as loyalty, half loyal to Jackal, and the other half helped Snake overthrow him. I’m guessing he cleans house, and gets rid of Jackal’s supporters. Whether he’ll replace them or not remains to be seen. He’ll be too busy dealing with his own shit to mess with us for a while. Some of those guys are not gonna go quietly.”
Lila blew out a breath. “Good. That’s good.”
Hook leaned back on the couch, and propped his feet up on the coffee table. “Are you gonna be able to make peace with what you saw go down today?”
“You mean the guy you turned over to the Grimms? Does it really matter how I feel?”
Jester joined in the conversation. “It matters to Striker. We are all aware when we patch in, that the MC becomes our life, our family. Everything we do is in support of the club. We are also aware of what happens if we betray that patch.
“We don’t run drugs Lila. That’s something our club decided long ago because of the violence and destruction it brings to the community. Not to mention we’d become an easy target for the cops. We are far from saints, but we don’t seek out violence.”
Hook took over where Jester left off. “To commit an act that goes against the charter is bad enough, to commit an act that harms our club, and puts our families in danger, is an unforgivable offense.”
Lila nodded, she understood all this, and even accepted it. Didn’t make the situation any less horrifying.
“Trust me, Lila,” Jester said. “The guy that did this did so fully aware of what would happen if they got caught. If Snake didn’t claim him we’d have taken care of it ourselves.”
“Jester.” Hook’s voice held a note of warning.
Lila waved him off. “It’s okay, I truly get it. I’m not going to freak out over this, nor will I tell a soul.” She paused, not sure if she wanted to continue.
“What is it, hon?” Jester asked.
“I’m just worried about Striker.” She was a little embarrassed to put her emotional cards on the table in front of them, but she’d started down this path, and might as well see it through. Lila cleared her throat. “I mean this was a serious betrayal by someone he trusted. Yesterday the guy was a brother, today he’s a traitor, and now he’s probably dead. I know he feels some kind of misplaced responsibility as your vice president.”
Hook huffed out a laugh. “Hon, you’re going to make one hell of an ol’ lady.”
Her eyebrows drew down. “How so?”
“Here we are, all worried you’re going to think we are a bunch of barbaric murderers, and you’re mostly concerned about how Striker will deal with all this. You’re a good woman, Doc.”
Her face heated as they both looked at her with respect and appreciation.
“It does wear on him, a lot,” Hook said. “Having your goodness in his life is going to bring him peace, help him sleep at night. I’ve already seen it calming him.”
Lila looked away as she recalled their earlier argument. Her presence in his life seemed to be doing the exact opposite. Striker appeared overly troubled by her, not comforted as they claimed.
Jester shifted to the couch, and sat next to her. One baseball glove sized hand reached out, and drew her head to his shoulder. “Whatever you’re thinking, knock it off. I don’t know what happened before we got here.” He chuckled. “Though I can guess by the torn panties on the floor over there.”
“Jester! What is it with you?” She buried her face in the bulk of his arm as the humiliation of him catching them for the second time washed over her.
Jester threw back his head and cracked out a laugh. “I get a kick outta making you blush, Stitch. But let me finish. I don’t know what Striker said to you, but I want you to remember one thing. All this shit that’s happening? Worst part for Striker is that it touched you, that he couldn’t protect you from it.”
“Jester’s right, Doc. Give him time. Striker will pull his head out of his ass.”
Exhaustion set in, and her eyelids became heavy. “What makes you think he has his head up his ass?”
“I’ve known him a long time, hon. I can guess how he’s reacting to his feelings for you. Go ahead and doze off, Doc. We’re not going anywhere until Striker gets back.” Hook rose from the couch. “I’m gonna grab a beer. Want one, Jest?”
Jester nodded at Hook, snatched the remote control from the coffee table, and skimmed channels until he found a documentary on something motorcycle related. Lila didn’t bother to pay attention.
She allowed her eyes to drift closed, and curled her feet up on the couch, with her head against Jester’s substantial shoulder. The events of the day caught up with her, and she felt drained, both emotionally and physically. She should probably head on into bed, but wanted to be out in the den when Striker returned. Not to mention, she wasn’t sure which bed she should sleep in tonight.